Words by Kayfabe Café Grit and grind - those are the things people do in gyms. They grit their teeth and grind to become better versions of themselves. That mentality also applies to people who are training to become wrestlers. In order for someone to be a professional wrestler, they must grind their way into becoming someone who they want to portray; a character in the midst of characters, gritting to chase their dreams in becoming wrestlers. Although they can do training in different gyms, none have the allure of Brawl Pit Bulusan, the first pro-wrestling dojo in the Philippines Photo from GMA News Brawl Pit Bulusan has housed some of Pinoy wrestling’s best moments. From the rebirth of post-pandemic wrestling to having full shows in the venue, the dojo has become synonymous when you say Pinoy wrestling. Saint John Martin, the owner of Brawl Pit Bulusan, has opened up the gym to people from different walks of life. While the dojo has housed the now defunct Art of War Wrestling, Manila Wrestling Federation has been doing their training there since late 2021. When asked about how the partnership began with Brawl Pit Bulusan, and to its extent World Underground Wrestling - Philippines, Nigel “Suplex” San Jose gave his thoughts: “Around 2021, di pa ako kasama sa first batch pero nainvite mag training here sa Brawl Pit wasnt really with WUW PH pero nainvite for connections since ininvite si Rex Lawin ni Saint John Martin if gusto mag train open lang so pakunti kunti since restrictions with pandemic since meron pa rin yung virus so ingat pa rin sa contact so iba naka face mask nagtr-train pero konti pa lang like Robin Sane, Fabio pa lang and others na kasama sa training then around mid year we invite more people, dun na ako nakasama… Yung partnership nagstart around November. Nagplan kami ni Fabio, nag-usap lang kami parang what if mag start kami ng low cost show which is Medyo Noche yung first show since nag start yung pandemic. Pure online show lang sya very low budget low effort and at the same since ginamit na namin yung venue ng Brawl Pit, dun na nagstart yung partnership. After ng Medyo Noche shoot, shinoot na din naming yung first WUW PH show rin after nag start yung pandemic. Mga nag-wrestling are some of us from MWF like Machine vs Robin Sane, myself versus CJ Serafin. Yun yung card nun and from there dun na nagstart ang partnership. Hindi inabsorb ng MWF yung WUW wrestlers pero dun nag start yung collab kaya nakikita niyo the likes of Razael, GK, SJM, and Ken Cifer ‘cause of the partnership. Kasi before some of us nagwre-wrestling sa WUW PH pre-pandemic invited as guest and hindi siya collab. From there, umabot na tayo sa AKTV along side with WUW wrestlers. Umabot na din sa TV and kasama pa rin sila. Etong partnership na to, continuous na to. Di naman namin binigyan namin ng deadline hanggang kailan lang. Di porket nasa TV na kami iiwan na namin ang WUW PH.“ Photo from World Underground Wrestling - Philippines From there, the partnership between World Underground Wrestling - Philippines and Manila Wrestling Federation blossomed into one mega-collaboration; two of the finest promotions in the country aligning themselves with one goal: to raise the bar of Pinoy wrestling. Robin Sane, when asked when did they realize that the partnership can relaunch the industry, had this to say: “Actually at first, it was just training lang talaga and through training we found ourselves continuing where we left off to create our new style of pro-wrestling. Of course, itong style of pro wrestling na’to was just a stipulation. Manila rules became Manila Style. Kung ano napapanood niyo sa AKTV and then bagong set of rules which is yung Manila Rules and dun namin na realize na ‘hey we can produce shows na’ and again, we won’t be able to produce the shows without Saint John Martin ‘cause he wanted to bring back Pinoy wrestling because the fans missed Pinoy wrestling and we owe it to them.” Photo from GMA News
The dojo is open to all who want to pursue their dreams in becoming a wrestler. Whether it be under MWF or WUW PH, its doors are open. MWF Head Coach Fabio Makisig commented on how Brawl Pit Bulusan is the go-to place for everyone willing to pursue the dream: “No questions about it. Brawl Pit is the first proper pro-wrestling dojo in the 21st century sa Pilipinas. It’s the first pro-wrestling dojo in a sense that there’s a pro-wrestling ring. If you look at the sign, it says “pro-wrestling,” right? So pro-wrestling in the Philippines will not be what it is without Brawl Pit. Napakaseminal nito kasi kung wala ito, we would still be traveling in different gyms, in different boxing gyms, hurting our bodies in training in boxing rings. So napakaimportante ng Brawl Pit because it became a home. MWF started without a roof, without a f*ckin roof, diba? So napakaimportante na we were able to find a place we can call our home and it’s great that we’re doing small shows here even though small shows feel like big shows, not just to learn pro-wrestling, nandun na yun. Brawl Pit is the place to learn pro-wrestling because all of the great Pinoy wrestlers are here. JDL is here, Fabio is here, Robin Sane is here, Nigel is here. So it’s the place to learn from but it's also the place to watch because when we hold shows here, we don’t hold back. It's like big shows pa rin whether it be PMCS, or Brawl Pit, or whatever. When we do it here, we bring it. So this is the place to be.” That being said, there’s no question that Brawl Pit Bulusan is the go-to place for everyone who is willing to get their feet wet in pro-wrestling here in the country or a place to watch some good Pinoy wrestling in person. The gym’s next show will be Dexcon: Wrestle Storm on March 24. You can grab your tickets here!
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